Porter Staying at Akron

United was hoping to finalize a deal with Porter this week, but after telling his players Monday afternoon that he planned to listen to United's offer, he changed his mind and reached agreement with the Zips, who took an undefeated record into the College Cup and lost to Virginia on penalty kicks in Sunday's final.

Attention for the DCU job now turns to former Kansas City coach Curt Onalfo, who is believed to be the only other finalist to replace Tom Soehn. Soehn left the club six weeks ago.

United could re-open the search. However, it's late in the process, and with the holidays approaching followed quickly by the scouting combine and draft, the club needs to move fast. That said, Chicago and New York are still without a coach too.

"He came home to Dayton and was questioned by his friends.
Then he smiled and just said nothing and he never sang again,
excepting very late at night when the shop was dark and closed.
He sang softly to himself as he sorted through the clothes.

Music was his life, it was not his livelihood,
and it made him feel so happy and it made him feel so good.
And he sang from his heart and he sang from his soul.
(And) he did not know how well he sang; It just made him whole. "

I know he's a fellow alum of The University. I'm not saying that Porter was the answer. For all we know, he may have never adjusted to the professional game.

However, with Mr. Onalfo, I just don't get excited. Perhaps it's because we saw what he did in KC. But perhaps we should be excited. DC's front office is a lot more committed, it's supporters are greater, and the club is just in a better situation than big blue.

Goff, I say you remove the censorship on this thread. Give us a thread. Then we'll be civil once the death march begins.

I just have a limited vocabulary when it comes to describing how much I HATE the idea of Onalfo leading us to another hateful season.

Let's not even think about whether or not Porter would have even been Good in the position. Let's instead dwell on the fact that our club has sunk so low that running a successful college program is a greater honor. DAMN. Oh, and I mother@#$^ing hate this.

I really don't understand why anyone is criticizing the DCU front office. They had their sights on a guy, but they couldn't talk to him until this week because his team kept winning. Then, he turned them down. How is that a screw-up? It sucks for whomever gets the job, because he will always be known as the 2nd choice -- but what else can you do? They took a chance on landing Porter. Kudos for taking the shot.

By the way, I remember when the New York Giants were turned down twice looking for a new coach. They finally settled on Dan Reeves, who ended up taking them to the playoffs with the best record any first-year Giants' coach has ever had. Of course, he had losing records the next 3 years, and then he was fired...and 2 years later he took the Falcons to the Super Bowl. Ya never know.

tom soehn chooses to leave a bad situation... a young coach in god awful Akron Ohio turned down this job...no stadium deal imminent...this is bad guys...hello baltimore united with purple jerseys and a new name

Can an MLS team be seen as 'tapping up' a college coach? Just a question.

I was excited to think DCU might actually step outside of the filthy sandbox that is the MLS coaching pool...it seems altogether rare that MLS brings in guys from outside of the MLS microcosm. Yeah, Kries and Onalfo were not established coaches and got a run, but truly, they were MLS insiders. If have heard time and again from folks that are sick of the revolving door for professional league coaches in the States. Guy gets axed in one place and pops up somewhere else.

Does this happen with good coaches? Sure.

Does it happen with subpar coaches that maybe should step aside? Yes.

Dang...Akron played an alluring style, seemed better than their competition (at least in the matches I watched) and, unlike many teams, did not seem to depend overwhelmingly on athleticism or fitness as a core strategy. Their pace of play with very quick, but that was ball speed and tactical speed. I truly LOVED their disdain of long ball and raptly watched them run at opponents.

I know naysayer doth protest that we need someone who "understands" the unique US soccer culture. (Gullit is Offender #1, but then again, Gullit could not coach his way out of a wet paper bag with a sharp pair of scissors...failed in Europe just as he did here.) I just ache for DCU to again find a manager with cunning and cleverness. The trick is that there are not so many of these managers floating around unemployed (or nearly so) in the States.

So much for talking my wife into selling the heirlooms to renew our season tickets.

I say we throw Benny to the lions - make him our head coach. Though he has no coaching experience, I'd want him more than Onalfo, Hamlett, or a MLS recycler. Unless we can pull El Diablo away from his club in Bolivia - its gonna be hard to find the right fit.

Chico,
Do you know otherwise? If so, please enlighten us. If not, this is the place for speculation and analysis. Nobody says we're inside the offices, but it certainly looks like United is not a place where talented coaches want to come work. It's a far cry from the image (also not based on what really happens inside the FO) of a dynasty team where everyone wants to be part of the success. And it's pretty hard to argue against the fact that on the stadium front, the FO has been the most unsuccessful of any team in the league pursuing a new home. There are strategies to get this done. Our FO banked on the wrong strategy, more than once.
David

I think Onalfo would make a fine coach, I was hoping we hired him instead of Soehn (or maybe it was Nowak), but the timing did not work out.
I was not impressed by what he did with KC, but I have never been excited by what anyone does with KC, so maybe that is not the coach's doing.

I was interested in Porter because he was something new and different.
But he didn't seem to want to be something new and different, and I can respect that.

I only hope that whoever ultimately does take the job, they not be forced to keep the current assistants in place, but can choose to bring someone new in to work the team.

And can I just say that many of you are certifiably nuts? You're welcome.

From another perspective this could be good for the US MNT. Hopefully they're looking at Porter for a job in the nat system. Dude's got a bright future and hopefully takes steps towards being a candidate for the top job some day.

That's it. We're officially toxic. With no hope for a stadium, a roster with either aging or college-level talent and a scouting department that is running on it's reputation from the 90's, I say it's high-time Mr. Chang and Mr. Garber pull the plug on the DC franchise. Sooner rather than later. I'm not riding out the string supporting a team that will see beating the NY/NJ Metrostars 3 times a season as the pinnacle of achievement.

1) DCU has been eyeing Porter for some time, as have other MLS and college clubs.

2) DCU receives permission to speak to Porter and expresses their interest in him.

3) Porter does not yet feel ready to coach at the professional ranks (understandable considering he is only 34), Mrs. Porter likes their situation in Akron, Porter wants to coach there a bit longer and try to win a championship.

4) Porter realizes he has an opportunity to apply some leverage, and does so to land a nice 5 year deal at Akron.

5) Mrs. Porter informs Porter there will be no need for him to sleep on the couch. Assuming, of course, that with the fatter contract they can get a bigger house.

Reasonable, no?

Oh, but what fun is that? It provides to pretext in which to slam the DCU front office!

I can't say this is good news, because I've gone on and on about how I don't see Onalfo as anything more than an extension of the mediocrity of the last 2 years. I still don't buy the "KC has no support, success there is impossible" argument, since KC won a title before they even had a single, committed owner. They also had the resources to make their very own ill-advised DP signing. He's had all the resources one needs to win in KC; the problems there have been on the field, not off it.

Porter has his reasons; maybe Akron offered to pay him more than DCU. Maybe he's more of a Midwestern guy and doesn't want to live in an East Coast city. Maybe at just 34 he doesn't feel he's ready to make the jump. It could also be that we blew it. Who knows? Obviously these days the trendy thing for United fans to do is to flip out and start screaming for heads to roll, but we don't have any idea how this actually went down.

I am strongly in favor of re-opening the search. There are more interesting possibilities in the MLS assistant/former head coach pool, and there's also the possibility of going abroad. I would love to be wrong, but Onalfo has shown no evidence of being ready to be a successful MLS head coach.

Re-open the search. Start over. Its still the offseason. We do not need a coach in place for the upcoming combine; an exercise which brings to light very few serviceable MLS players anyway. Not much of a downside risk there.

Feel free to disagree but I would also add, leave Richie Williams and Onalfo off the new list completely. Lets start from scratch.

I was intrigued by the prospect of Porter, but I was concerned that he hadn't won a championship as a coach. During the final, I had a hard time routing for the Hoo's when I kept thinking, "If this guy's going to be the one, I want him to have won something first."

I really think that Robin Fraser is the guy the should hire. He has played both internationally and in MLS. Re-opening the search just seems to be setting the franchise behind. They need a staff in place for two reasons: transfer window opens in January and MLS draft/combine is next month also. Why wait? They were willing to take a risk on Porter, so why not do the same with Fraser? I really think Onalfo is a clone of Soehn.

College coaches have a career expectation that's really hard to beat, frankly. If you're any good at all, you can expect a long career and practically tenure. All while living in a college town (the best!), with outstanding benefits.

Good pro coaches rotate out every few years to a nomadic life. And have their competence questioned hourly by Internet Experts.

College coaches have a career expectation that's really hard to beat, frankly. If you're any good at all, you can expect a long career and practically tenure. All while living in a college town (the best!), with outstanding benefits.

Good pro coaches rotate out every few years to a nomadic life. And have their competence questioned hourly by Internet Experts.

Hardly surprising someone would choose a college life over pro.

Posted by: JkR- | December 16, 2009 10:37 AM |
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JkR-
I could not agree with you anymore. If I had the option of being back in the college life over being a proffesional, there would be no choice. Toss me a solo cup and lead me to the keg. Time for some keg stands!!

As far as analyzing the combine and whatever pre-draft or pre-preseason invite-only camps we might run, I think Kasper, Ashton, Simpson, and Olsen will be dealing with those more than they normally would. A new coach has so much to figure out coming in that he's going to need a lot of help. We need to pick the right coach and hope that the remaining coaching staff and Kasper can provide suitable information towards drafting well and getting good players into training camp fighting for spots.

teo_68:

Pile up of several things. People are still mad at how the season went, the wait for a coach is becoming trying, and (with certain posters) every single instance where DC United doesn't succeed in spectacular fashion is met with blind rage. Plus, only a very small number of people have had much positive to say about signing Onalfo, who was our 2nd choice after Porter.

***

Atlante takes the lead! I missed the goal, though. When did Atlante start wearing light blue? When will MLS clubs be able to compete with Mexican teams for guys like Santiago Solari?

Also, my Spanish is quite awful, but I believe this says something about Etcheverry having an "open door" to return to DC United as coach (though it also seems to say something about there being a 5 day between January 20th and 25th in which he must return).

c) To me, this really isn't about our next manager, but it's another sign that the club are shedding credibility with every big decision being made. It's a shame - nothing ends up looking good in public. And sure, it's just a college coach deciding this wasn't the right move. But to the member of the public actually paying attention, it's another own goal for United. And some of our fears are coming to light - Will Chang, on his own, might not be up to this. And all of the monetary losses could really be hurting the club.

How many of you people have played soccer? You see, I'm not convinced any of you know what you are talking about. You are a fan...yes. But I'll bet very few here have played college soccer much less professional soccer. None of you are qualified to predict how Onalfo would do with United. How did Arena do with NY? Does that mean he is a terrible manager?

I'm not saying Onalfo will be good...I have no idea. But there is equally little reason to say that he will screw up. He has a limited track record and not necessarily a stellar one at that, but if no coaches were ever given chances then we wouldn't have any at all.

Grow up, folks. By dismissing our team before we've ever started pre-season training we are starting to sound like Red Bulls fans. I'm still confident that Payne will come through for us.

Its disappointing not to get our top choice, but its not the end of the world.

Onalfo has the pedigree, and while not performing in KC, look what a change in venue did for Bruce (last with NY, now with LA) and Sigi (kicked out of LA, title in Columbus, Seattle).

As far as scouting players and combines, etc. Dave Kasper is still around, if a bit quite these days. If we can't get a coach in place by the draft, he's more than capable of selecting another first round pick that will go overseas :-)

It would be nice to have someone in place by the opening of training camp though.

Much of the issue with most of these candidates is working for Payne and Kasper and the likelihood that any new coach would have little or no control over the areas that most coaches feel they must have. Those posters who offer that the front office must be looked at throughout this process are spot on: Onalfo might be the only viable candidate since he knows what he's getting into with those two.

I saw nothing tactically enticing about Porter's Akron side in both games this past weekend. College soccer is a bastardization of the beautiful game and we need a coach as far removed from the college game as possible. Onalfo, while having a college pedigree, knows the game at the youth club level, the MLS level, and at the national team level. He has experience. Give him the job!

Never thought Porter was coming, which is why I never worried about it. He would be crazy to come to DC United where there is an unstable environment, no time to get the people he wants in, has the pressure of winning in his first season, and has no fan support. If he messes up once people will be calling for his head. I doubt dc was going to give him an obscene pay increase so I expected him to stay. The fact that DC put all its eggs in one basket shows there not getting very creative with the job selection. I expect Onalfo to get announced early next week.

I don't understand the "putting all DC's eggs in one basket" reference. This is a standard hiring practice. You have an opening, you interview candidates, you select one and make an offer. You don't offer the job to several people and see who's the worst negotiator of the lot.

Porter was an out-of-the-box choice when people are complaining about the coaching carousel. A Euro coach would be nice, but they want to stay in Europe, don't they? Face it, the pickins are slim.

Barcelona was just toying with Atlante at the end, yet the Mexicans did pretty well over all until Messi came in. Before that, Barca had completely dominated possession but without really creating many scoring chances.

Chest, Atlante's light blue shirts were new for me, too. Their main jersey is similar to Barca's jersey but I think I've seen them wearing white as their road kit in the past. (Like at RFK)

"I'll bet very few here have played college soccer much less professional soccer."

So what? Do you think that average commenters on any blog are experts or pros? Enlighten us with your esteemed palmares champ...

I do however belong to the tiny percentage of folks that isn't convinced that Onalfo couldn't be successful here. I know less about the behind the scenes in KC than I do about DC, but I do know that KC play on a tiny little field and they seem to always give DCU a hell of a fight regardless of the betting odds. United is actually lucky it wasn't two draws and a loss vs the Wiz in 09, instead of two draws and a LUCKY win.

I think it is very worth while to keep looking beyond Onalfo for a another couple of weeks. Rontgen is an interesting idea, but I doubt he would do it. Hireing Marco would put butts in the seats, and he might even do a good job. But it would be a risk, just like hiring Porter would have been.

I didn't make up "all the eggs in one basket" reference. It just seems that DCU never considered anyone else. They never interviewed him and waited till Christmas to talk to him. I don't want Onalfo or Porter as manager. As Goff said we don't know if they have or will interview foreign coaches. My use of "all of the eggs in one basket" just means that it was obvious Porter was there man, they were willing to do whatever they needed to get him, and they lost out on him. Thats it. I'm not implying anything. Chill out

Btw ive played in the development academy and have been a Division 1 prospect. From my experience that accounts for nothing. Half of the people that play Division 1 cant play and half of the people that coach are not any good.

I noticed it looked an extremely well-laid-out town (unusual for Europe). Wiki: In the 1960s, the Government decided that a further generation of new towns in the South East was needed to relieve housing congestion in London.

By the way, Milton Keynes looks well laid out because it was a planned city from the beginning. It is, however, one of the dreariest and most unpleasant places in all England. Those raised there claim to be happy to be from Milton Keynes...FAR from Milton Keynes.

JkR- You're right. I don't know what to believe. The only people that know are KP, Kasper, and Chang. Not anybody else in the organization. Not the players. Not the academy. None of the staff members. But what I said is my opinion based on what Goff reported. I give a lot of credit to Goff because DCU is keeping this close to their chest. I don't even think its worth speculating.

This was kind of interestng: I'm watching FSC's "live"telecast of Tottenham vs. Manchester City. Wasn't much happening in a scoreless draw. So, I flip to ESPN News to see if there's something there about Donovan. On the scroll/ticker thing below, there's news about a couple of baseball trades. I'm about to switch back, when they start showing EPL scores. The score comes up for the Spurs-City match, showing Tottenham up 1-0, almost 37 minutes into it. My brain registers confusion, and I say "Huh? No, it's not."

I switch hurriedly back to the game. It's just over 36 minutes into the game, and don't you know it? Spurs scores a few seconds later!!!

But you are near the bottom of the table in the Argy Bargy Goff fantasy CL league so you have been eliminated from contention, sorry. I am perfect though I started out strong and now am fading, its the DCU script.

@270, FYI IMHO, the Wii is a novelty. It is fun for a while but any soccer game played on that system is doomed to suck. They're good fun for the whole family, but I've tried playing FIFA on the Wii and I just wanted to come home and turn on my Xbox 360 regardless of how much bigger my neighbor's tv is...
Nintendo does have some very fun and successful franchise games, but they aren't soccer related.

I switch hurriedly back to the game. It's just over 36 minutes into the game, and don't you know it? Spurs scores a few seconds later!!!

Somehow, ESPN News is controlling events.....

Posted by: fischy | December 16, 2009 3:50 PM

Ha! FSC matches are always so far behind. I know of like it on a Saturday morning, cause I'll see a goal pop up on a vidiprinter then change over to FSC in time to see it. Someone explained to me why that is - but I forget.

21:33 Breaking news from the Press Association: Everton tonight confirmed they have "agreed a deal in principle" with the Los Angeles Galaxy for forward Landon Donovan to join the Merseyside club on a two-and-a-half-month loan in January."

@delantero: I played 09 with Wii controllers. It was a pain in the butt, and had I been more patient it might have been alright, but like I said I just wanted to go home and play on my 360. It may be passable with standard controllers. Graphics weren't anything like FIFA on the 360, or Play Station 3. The great thing about these games these days is the realistic graphics. I haven't seen 10 on the Wii, but if it's anything like 09 I wouldn't buy it.

Evidence of the massive scandal first came to light June 17, during a Special Olympics competition in Milpitas, CA. Marcy Simms, a 27-year-old gymnastics contestant, was declared a winner in the individual competition, despite falling off the two-foot-wide balance beam some 11 times and failing to execute even a single cartwheel.

Upon finishing the routine, Simms raised her arms above her head and cheered in triumph. Her parents then raced over to hug and kiss her, sharing in their daughter's "victory."

"When we saw Marcy celebrating, we were immediately suspicious of corruption," Brundage said. "Her routine was terrible—what could she possibly have been so happy about?"

I've been thinking about the criticism doled out to the Front Office recently, in particular to Kevin Payne, and maybe there's some merit to these claims.

How long will D.C. United be led by Payne? Forever? When will the right time be for him to step down? History has showed that civilizations, businesses, and even people who don't change--fail.

I'm a little bit concerned about the club being turned down by 3 coaches. DCU's history speaks for itself. We are the most successful club in leagues history and continue to be considered, by most, the flagship team of the league.

Who would turn down the opportunity to lead this team? Alright, yes, Porter's decision was probably legitimate and understandable...but an assistant coach (Spencer) and Yallop too? Is there any chance that Payne and his good ol' methods are hindering the club in any way from attracting interest from coaches and accomplishing its goals?

I came across this video last week about some new and cool ways you can use the wii remote with slight modification. Posted by: redskinsux

Thanks for the link. Amazing stuff. You have to love entrepreneurs. Not sure if I have the know how to change a sharpie into a use-able white board, but knowing there are folks like that that are toying with tech is great.